Duril Borsennoth
Soul Guardian A Soul Guardian is an individual with large amounts of knowledge, wisdom, and power. They train for years upon years to learn to become Soul Guardians. Their physical appearance usually involves being very large, very bulky, and they always wear intimidating armor and intricate masks with collars around the neck. One of the most obvious things about a Soul Guardian is their Guardian Blade. A Guardian Blade is linked to a Guardian's Soul, and the blade of a Soul Guardian is one of the few weaknesses a Soul Guardian has. A mere scratch of a Soul Guardian's blade will kill any Guardian if not treated quickly by another Soul Guardian. A Soul Guardian will feel a natural desire to save ad protect all life around him, regardless of their alignment. However, when a certain individual is important to Fate or has a Destiny that makes them necessary to Azeroth's continued survival the Soul Guardian will feel an abnormally strong desire to protect this one individual over the desire to save the life around it. Each and every Soul Guardian has a specific element that they are tied to or specialize in. Duril Borsennoth is tied to Arcane. Ellond MacKilworth is tied to Lightning. There are many others who seek Fire, Ice, Nature, and even The Light. There are absolutely NO Shadow Guardians. Shadow Guardians are no longer called Soul Guardians, but instead simply left to their own devices. Shadow is the manifestation of evil and serves no purpose when defending for pure purposes, and as such there can be no Death Knight Class Guardians, Priests, or Warlocks. Each of these classes have some sort of affiliation with Shadow, and this disables their potential to inherit the powers a Soul Guardian commands. Duril Borsennoth Growing up, Duril Borsennoth led a life of farming and simplicity. He lived on a farm somewhere in the vicinity of Elwynn Forest with his Father and his Sister, who was three years younger than he. Up until the age of 12 his father taught him nothing but good virtues and imparted wisdom on him constantly, albeit most of what his father told him he did not understand until he was much older, such are the things of childhood. Duril's father told him many stories about many things, but as a child, he always loved to hear the stories of Soul Guardians, legendary men and women dedicated to protecting all life the best they could. His father, who had faught in a long-forgotten war between the Alliance and Horde, began to see great potential in Duril. At the age of 13, his father began teaching him to fight with Swords, and over the course of three years, he became a Master of the art. Sometimes Duril's sister became jealous of what seemed like her father playing favorites with Duril, but he constantly reassured her that this was not the case. Duril still does not know the truth of this matter. When Duril was 17, his father went off to fight in yet another war, feeling the obligation to serve his country and keep his family safe from the pillaging Horde. When Duril's Father did not return, Duril was left alone with his sister to care for. He and his sister ran the farm for two years, once again leading the simple life they had grown up with. Duril constantly cared for his sister, making sure she was fed and clothed and perfectly happy. His father left behind a sword that he had kept from his younger days, and sometimes Duril practiced with it, something he enjoyed very much so. However, their peace did not last long, for rumors began to spread of a murderer and rapist in the countryside. One day, as Duril was coming back from a day plowing the fields, he comes home to find his sister dead with a man standing over her, putting his clothes back on. This man sees Duril, panics, and dives out the window. Duril becomes enraged, so much to the point that he abandons the virtues and wisdom that his father had taught him. He grabs the Sword from off a mount on the wall, chases the man for 3 miles, and kills him. After the man dies, he sits down on the side of the road not far from where he slew him and cries, for he had not only lost the one family member he had left, but he had killed a man for it. A few neighbors from a local farm walk by and see Duril crying. They also see the bloody sword he holds and the body that lay not far from where he sits. Completely aghast, they run to Stormwind and tell the guards of what Duril had done. He had no proof that the man had killed his sister, so he runs back to his home, fetches some of his more precious belongings, and flees the scene. He runs a very long time, often getting caught and then escaping, trying to find some way to find the peace in his life that he once knew. On the Run For months, Duril passes from village to village, staying in Inns, stables, and even sometimes simply sleeping outside. He made money by doing various tasks for innkeepers or farmers. Over his travels he sees the absolute horrible way the world has become, how corruption has spread and obvious malice is no longer anything more than commonplace among people and often dismissed. These observations troubled him deeply, causing him to question the purpose of his existence in this harsh world. However, Duril notices changes in himself. He notices dramatic increases in his physical strength and speed. He notices nature and it's inhabitants almost helping him in his quest. Over time, the soldiers stopped pursuing, In one village, Duril stayed the night in an Inn, feeling lucky that he slept in such a luxurious place for at least one night. He met a few people he appreciated, a few people he did not, and above all, he had learned a rumor of a place in Arathi Highlands called The Wolf Lands. He did not hear much, but after the conversation he got excited and went to sleep in his room, ready for the next morning to set off for this new land. When he woke up, EVERYTHING in the village was destroyed. Everything was completely obliterated, apart from the very bed he slept in. It was as if a mountain had rolled over the village. He was dumbstruck, only taking from the village and leaving for this fabled place he had heard of. To this day, Duril only have vague ideas of what had happened. The Wolf Lands Duril searced for a week to find these "Wolf Lands", and finally he found them. It was a beautiful place,a town tucked away in a very thick forest up in the mountains. There he met the man who owned the town, a man named Karaman the Wolf God. Upon introduction he was alarmed at the man's title, but the man told him that it was not a literal one, it was metaphorical, being surprisingly kind and gentle with him. Duril spoke with this man for a long time. Karaman told him that The Wolf Lands was a place for misfits, a place where those who did not belong could truly belong. It was a place where everyone was a Family, and the town was a true home to him. While there, Duril met an Elemental named Xaxan. Xaxan was a very, VERY old Elementalist (About 7000 years) who had been dabbling with the elements for so long that he had actually become one with the four elements. He could change form and become an elemental of all four elements. He could not, however, change into his original Tauren form, a curse of his strange adaption to Nature. Duril and Xaxan exchanged stories, spoke of things they had learned along their journeys, and much more. The moment Duril told Xaxan about his observation of the world and the way it has become, Xaxan made a mental connection between this young man he had just met and a old friend he had known for a very long time, a man named Ellond MacKilworth. Being as wise as the earth itself, Xaxan told Duril of this man, told him to seek him out in northern Lordaeron, and of what he was; a Soul Guardian. Duril could not believe what he heard. He had always heard stories of Soul Guardians as a child, but he did not think they were actually real!! And to become an apprentice of one? He could not fathom what had just happened, what he had just discovered, but he knew the Elemental spoke the truth. He heeded Xaxan's advice and sought out this "Ellond MacKilworth". A Soul Guardian After a few days of searching with Xaxan's specified locations, he found Ellond in a cathedral. This man stood at almost 9 feet tall, and his body structure was not only impressive, but it was intimidating. He wore a suit of Armor that spoke of constant fighting. He wore a mask that covered his facial features completely, all but his eyes, and had a collar at the bottom edges of the mask. The most impressive thing about this man, however, was the large sword he carried. It gleamed a bright bluish orange, and changed color slowly or quickly depending on how the light reflected. It had runed inscripted down the sides of the blade, and in the center of the blade, a bright white light stood, just as impressive as the rest of the sword itself. This sword's name was Akri'ai, Greatsword of the Guardian. Duril asked this man for apprenticeship. The man scorned him and turned him away, saying that Duril was just aother one of the hundreds of people who asked him. Duril argued his point, but Ellond was a very intelligent and curt man, so he could not convince Ellond to change his mind. Yet, the moment he mentioned Xaxan's name, Ellond stopped, and immediately accepted. Over the next six years, Duril trained to be a Soul Guardian, his master being Ellond. He learned over 15 languages, learned about enough about war to make even the frostiest war veteran seem like a child, and learned enough about history to make every scholar in the world seem like mewling kittens. He no longer slepts but meditated, an art that Ellond taught him in the early stages of his training. He went through enough physical and mental tests to nearly drive him to insanity. Most importantly, he learned to use Arcane to it's fullest potential. The day he learned to finally harness the power of Arcane, he learned not to use it within himself, but to bend the world around him. He learned that Arcane was everywhere, in every nook and cranny of the planet, and it was constantly thriving to be used. All Duril needed to do was give it direction, and he could harness amounts of Arcane the strongest mages of the Kirin Tor and even some Blue Dragonflight members would die trying to use. As he learned these things, he began to increase in size akin to Ellond MacKilworth's strange height and build. Making the Sword When his training came to an end, Duril and Ellond traveled to a crypt in Tirisfal and slew hundreds of undead for a single prize; an artifact called a Guardian Stone. The both of them barely made it out of this crypt alive, for the undead keeping this stone fought with viscousness like no other. After they retrieved this Stone, they then proceeded to Uldum, in Tanaris. There, Duril collected Titansteel weapons from an old Titan Battle that had been fought there at the gates a long, long time ago. After he collected the Titansteel, he went to Ironforge. It was in the heart of Ironforge that he constructed a sword not with his hands, but with flows of Arcane. He poured his heart, mind, and soul into making this sword, and it took him three days of no meditation to make it. Once he was done, he went into the center of Old Irongforge, on the upraised platform, and handed both the sword he had made and the Guardian Stone to Ellond, who had been waiting for his arrival. There, Ellond split the Guardian Stone into four pieces and placed them within the sword. The process caused a massive earthquake that shaked the very foundations of Ironforge in it's entirety. When Duril picked up this new sword, a suit of armor blinked to existence and covered his body. He instantly became aware of not only his soul's link to it and the sword, but a very massive reservoir of energy that he now had at his disposal a power he had not fathomed possible. Thus was the birth of Nalrifar, Claymore of the Guardian. He looked up to find his Master, but he was gone, leaving Duril alone to wonder where to go next. The Combining of Two Souls Over the span of about four hundred years, Duril had many adventures. He protected may specific people, saved may lives, sometimes even cost some, but always did what he did for the greater good of Azeroth. He sometimes even came across Ellond, his mysterious old master saving lives and protecting the world in the same maner Duril always was. One of his travels took him across the path of a Blue Dragon named Norigos. Norigos was a few hundred years youger than Duril, and he was very surprised to hear this fact. They met in Coldarra, their interests coinciding in both ceasing Malygos's Campaign and testing the Mana Stream and Ley Lines at the site. Since they both had similar interests at the time, they traveled together for a few months, Norigos teaching Duril spells he did not know, and even Duril teaching Norigos spells he did not know, something that gains great respect among Blues. The two stayed in contact over the span of about 50 years, becoming closer but never too close. They often came to eachother for council on matters that required more thinking than that of just one mind. One day, Norigos's father died, and it was the fault of his own flight, one of the higher ranking Wyrms had gone mad and killed him. Norigos loved his father compassionately, and this event threatened to drive him mad with grief. He left the temple he had resided at and went to find Duril, knowing exactly where to look. He told Duril of what had happened and of the impending insanity he felt growing inside him. Right then and there, Duril felt that strange attraction of his Soul wanting desperately to protect Norigos's, so he informed Norigos of this pull, and Norigos accepted. Thus their souls were linked. To solve the problem that seemed to be growing inside origos, Duril proposed that they go to Icecrown. Duril believed that killing off masses of undead would serve to purposes; it would thin their population, and it would relieve Norigos's massive amounts of stress. So, they traveled to Icecrown and began slaying countless undead, using their amazing spellcasting capabilities and physical prowess to dispatch hundreds of them by the hour. As they slew undead, their wanton destruction attracted more undead. Soon, thousands upon thousands were in the area Duril and Norigos inhabited. It was a battle that shook the heavans themselves. Duril barely made it out alive. Norigos, however, did not. Duril's soul was linked to Norigos's, and he felt the pain of Norigos's failure. He felt the pain of his father dying. He felt the pain of his mother's insanity growing up as a whelp and drake. He felt the pain of Norigos dying a painful death, and felt his soul slipping away. Duril could not believe what was happening, and so he did the first thing his instinct told him to; He took Norigos's soul into his own soul. They both had inhabited the same body. For months, neither Duril nor Norigos comprehended what had happened, or the change that had taken place. Duril stayed secluded from the word, trying to figure out what this new accomodation had done to his body. First off and most obvious, Duril and Norigos had both increased in power. Massively. The power they could wield now was incomprehensible. It defied all that either of them thought was possible, it's mere presence nearly rendering them unconscious whenever tapped into. The equivilation that Norigos had made of this new power was close to Malygos's own power, if perhaps not equal. Their mind had merged into one, sharing memories and knowledge and wisdom. Their mental capacity had increased phenomenally, one of the main reasons their power had expanded so much. They could transform into a very massive Blue Dragon, although the human form had no difference in the power they could tap into. Their human form no longer had it's bulky, muscular appearance. Instead it carried a very graceful, elf like appearence, increasing their speed and strength even more than it had already supernaturally been. Nalrifar could not longer handle the power that they held inside their combined souls. It split into two halves, one named Norifar and the other named Nalrigon. Duril and Norigos used their massive power to reforge it into a larger blade, one that was even greater than the two halves combined. It took them many years to complete such a task, and in the end, the sword was named Nalrifarus, Guardian of Life. Now Today, Duril and Norigos have completely joined to become one being, simply being called Duril because Duril is older, but will also go by the name Norigos as well. Duril finds refuge in the Temple of Luminstrasza, helping lead the Blue Dragonflight stationed there in their quests, helping organize and defend against those with malicious intent against any form Life. He is still trying to completely understand the changes he has gone through, but that will take much more time than has already passed. He hopes to one day find the same inner peace as he had a child, and inner peace Norigos never had.